Improvement in operating gun-carriages



ALL. CASWTELL.

Gun Carriage.

Patented Ouf. 18, 1859."

N. PETERS4 PHOTOLITHOGRAPMER, WASHINGTON. D. C,

Unirse STATESl trice.

PATENr IMPROVEMENT IN OPERATING GUN-CARRIAGES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 25,S06, dated October 1S, 1859.

To all whom, t may concern.'

Beit known that I, A. L. GASWELL, of Lansingburg, in the county of Rensselaer and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Mode of Operating Gun- Carriages; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the annexed drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure l represents a plan view of a cannon mounted upon a carriage in a4 position ready for discharging. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional elevation taken through the carriage and the carriageways, showing the device for operating the carriage. Figs. 3 and L show, in enlarged views, the arrangement for coupling and loosening the levers upon the roller-shaft.

My invention relates to an improvement in what are termed stationary guns-such as ships guns, Src., and my improvement consists in the employment of a large roller placed under the truck of the carriage and .supported between the carriage-ways, around which is passed ropes or chains, the ends of which are attached to the front and rear part of the truckframe in such a manner that these cords or chains can be tightened up when necessary, and it further consists in operating this roller by suitable levers which are to be connected with the shaft of the roller when preparing the gun for action after the recoil from the first iire, and to be disconnected from the shaft, so as to permit its turning in the recoil of the gun without affecting the levers, in the manner hereinafter described.

To enable those skilled in the a-rt to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

The gun A, being of any size suitable for service, is mounted in a carriage, B, in the usual manner; and the elevating-screw C and the several parts for bringing the gun to bear upon an object are in every respect similar to those in common artillery use, and therefore it is not necessary that I should here particularize these parts, but conne my description to the parts constituting my invention.

The drawings represent the cannon directed through a port-hole in the gunwale of a ship, D being the gunwale, E the port, and F the deck, of the ship. G are the ways, upon which is mounted the truck H, for supporting lthe gun-carriage B. The vusual manner of returning the cannon to its position for the purpose of being discharged, after the recoil has taken place from the preceding discharge, has been by the employment of pulleys and ropes attached to the truck, the use of which involves much time and unnecessary labor, which is very important to economize in time of action.

In order to facilitate the movement of the gun in returning it to the port-hole and to its ap-.

propriate position for discharging, I arrange at an intermediate point between the ends of the guideways G a large roller or drum, J, having a shaft passing laterally through it and also through the guideways, which latter serve as bearings for the roller. -The shaft proceeds out on either side of the ways G a suitable distance to receive levers for turning the roller, which operation will be hereinafter described. Two or more suitable cords or chains, a a, are passed around the roller J, the ends of which chains are carried in opposite directions'and connected to the front and rear ends of the truck LI. To the front end of the truck the ends of the chains are Xed permanently to pins b b; butin order that the slack which may be occasioned in the chain from various circumstances shall be taken up, particularly if hempen rope is used, I arrange in the rear end of the truck-frame small rollers@ c, which may be similar to a windlass, but provided with ratchets and pawls, as shown by Figs. l and 2, so that the ropes or chains can be wound up and kept tight upon the large roller J, and prevented from slipping thereupon. These ropes or chains being arranged upon the roller and upon the truck-frame, as above shown, it will be clearlyT seen that by rotating the large roller the whole carriage may be moved back or forth upon the ways with great facility, and at the same time there will bey nothing liable to derangementfrom the recoil of the gun.

Tothe ends of the large roller-shaft for operating the roller are attached levers L L, such as vare shown by Figs. 3 and 4. These levers are placed loosely upon the shaft, so that in the recoil of the gun the shaft will turn freely without acting upon the levers; but by inserting a pin, M, through the ends e e of the levers and through the circular perforated disk N, which is keyed fast to the shaft, the levers will be coupled to the shaft and ready for returning the carriage back to its proper position. The keys M are then Withdrawn and the gun is ready for discharging. Instead of this arrangement or coupling and uncoupling the levers to the shaft, a pawl may be attached to the levers, which Will actuate a spur or ratchet Wheel corresponding to the disk N. so that by a vibration of the lever the roller may be turned.

I have arranged upon the ioor of the carriage B, as shown by Fig. 2, a hand-Wheel, lz, which, in connection with the traversing bolt c', the latter Working in a curved slot in the truck-frame H, the carriage can be rigidly fixed to the truck at any desired point, and by this means the point of range is maintained for any number of discharges. In order to alter the range of the gun, it can readily be done by loosening the hand-Wheel. The carriage can then be moved laterally by the rack and pinion, in the usual manner.

I have described the guidexvays upon which the truck and gun-carriage are mounted as being Xed permanently; but it will be readily perceived that my invention may be applied With equal facility to revolving or repeating ordnance, or any ordnance where the carriage has a reciprocating motion guideways.

Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. Returning the gun up t0 the port-hole after being discharged by means of a roller and cords or chains operated by a lever or its equivalent, when the same are arranged in the manner and dispense with the use of guntackle as set forth.

2. The manner herein described, or equivalently the same, for securing the gun and carriage in a fixed position upon the trucks, so as to maintain a given range for any number of discharges, as set forth.

ASA L. GASVELL.

XVitnesses:

CHs. M. HUGHEs, MICH. HUGHEs. 

